BRIAN PAIGE RECEIVES BEACON AWARD
BRIAN PAIGE RECEIVES BEACON AWARD
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
Cultivating an Environment of Growth
By Neal Glatt , CSP , ASM
Everyone wants better employees and today that usually requires growing them internally . By starting with a high-potential worker and developing them intentionally , companies can build a near-ideal employee ready to tackle their specific issues . But employee development only occurs in the right environment .
Employee growth is not unlike plant growth in that the result is dependent primarily on environmental factors rather than genetic make-up . Unfortunately , managers rarely audit their environment for employee growth potential and even fewer have clear ideas about the factors that would make a strong growth environment . Here are the seven environmental factors that should be considered when cultivating a culture of development :
Advanced Expertise - Growth can only occur when there is guidance from an experienced mentor who is setting the pace for production and sharing knowledge . Everyone should have a committed coach or mentor .
Continually Challenged - Advancing to the next level never happens by accident , so an environment where everyone is challenged to reach higher levels of performance creates the tension needed to advance intentionally .
Future-Oriented - A team which is focused on past mistakes doesn ’ t have the right outlook to grow their team . Growth is always the result of forward thinking where a better reality is a goal and positive intent around its achievement is embraced .
Affirming Atmosphere - Development takes a lot of extra work beyond simply the status quo so teams that encourage each other to the next level of their skills are the ones that usually stick it out to see the results . It is the consistency of effort over long periods of time that is enabled through encouragement and brings true results .
Mission Driven - When team members understand what their company does to enhance the lives of their customers and how their role contributes to making a difference , they are more likely to wake up excited and be driven to be the best version of themselves . This energy is essential to growth .
Failure is Embraced - When we learn new skills and put them into practice , failing is a large part of the learning journey . In fact , learned experience is the quickest way to know anything . But a negative reaction to mistakes will deplete growth momentum , so wise teams expect and embrace them when they occur .
Mutual Advancement - People always work best when they ' re working together , so teams where every member is growing are far more likely to see positive results . The best environments for growth have individualized and continuous development happening for every person and the culture is one of learning .
If your team needs more help growing itself to the next level , or your want help building a better growth environment , check out the industry-specific resources available at www . GrowTheBench . com . MLP members are invited to connect with Neal at neal @ growthebench . com .
Know someone you ’ d like to nominate for the Beacon Award ?
MLP members are encouraged to nominate colleagues for Beacon Award consideration . Please write a letter to the MLP board of directors with the name of your nominee and include the reasons why you believe they should receive the Beacon award . Take the award ’ s purpose and title into consideration when crafting your nomination letter . Be specific , cite examples , include details and , if possible , ask for letters of support for your nominee from other MLP members . The deadline for nominations is November 1 , 2023 .
Nomination letters may be sent to : Beacon Award MLP Board of Directors 67 West Street Medfield , MA 02052 info @ mlp-mclp . org (“ Beacon Award ” in Subject Line please )
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